









/ *\ 






^^ v . 



%$- 












iOo, 



x°°* 
























x "^. 






%. * o „ o ' .V 



»°<2* 






C 






^ y 



»i. 



^ 



e %> 






x 0o x. 



1,0^ 



"> 



> 0o x. 









o°\- 




C' • ^^ * «P ^ t deals'* * 









• Y- 



SOD HOUSES 

OR THE 

DEVELOPMENT 

OF THE 

Great American Plains 



A PICTORIAL HISTORY OF 
THE MEN and MEANS THAT 
HAVE CONQUERED THIS 
WONDERFUL COUNTRY 



S. D. BUTCHER 

Author and Illustrator 



Published by the 
WESTERN PLAINS PUBLISHING CO. 

Kearney. Neb. — Chicago, 111. 



Copyrighted 1904, by SOLOMON D. BUTCHER, 314 W. 26th Si., Kearney, Neb 



ONflRFSS 
Two Oooies Hertwd 
SEP 6 1904 

OneyrlrM Eirtrv 







INTRODUCTION 



Che pio '"try is the man who has to devise the ways and means for taking the country as nature has left it and he finds it, 

and bring it into subjection to the will of man. 

Such a man finds himself and familj alone in a vast e pan oi countn face to face with nature and the problem oi how to subdue it. One 

of the first pn I i provide shelter and how to provide 1 1 ti r himseli and family while he i gaged in the task before 

him, thai of tn h so thai she will respond to her functions relating to seed time and harvest. 

In a fori | a man begins by felling trees and with the logs thus secured he erects the "iog cabin," famed in song and -t..ry. and 

which is such an important factor in the historj of the growth and development of America. During tin performance of this task he with his 

f.uniK live I", thi i in p fin md gel mo I oi theii f I neci arj to sustain life by recourse to his faithful gun in securing game, while the family 

busj themsel i i picking the berries and wild fruit that are found in the forest, and securing fish from neighboring streams. 

When In . eltered hi begins the greatei tasl I earing awaj the forest to secure open ground in which to plant the grain 

table seeds that will in due season produce the necessary f 1 for himself and family. This work take- many months and many years oi 

patient toil and effort to accomplish the desired result. 

When the pioneer on the plains finds thi >pot that to his eye invites a home, draws the reins upon and halt- his faithful hors 

i that have brought In- "prairie -eh. H.ner" or ean\ 1 wagon safely t.. the end of the journey with it- precious load, consisting "i wife 

and family and family supplies with the few chosen tools and implements that are o necessarj tn aid in giving him victory, lie sees only an endless 
grass covered plain with not a tree or bush, and very often not a hillock to hreak the monotony. Here h< takes up his burden, but note the i 
11. i i of his work with that of the pioneer in the forest. The plainsman soon gets his "grasshopper plow" from among his treasures in the 
wagon, hitches hi- team to it and cutting furrows through the prairie on a chosen spot oi ground, turns over -trip- of sod twelve to fourteen 
inches wide and about four inches thick, and after turning over a sufficient amount oi these sod snip-, they are cut into length's of about threi 
feet, after which the) air gathered, and from thi- material a house is creeled: lint how different front the "log cabin" which we have mentioned 
Taking the strips oi sod In selects ami levels for hi- foundation the same as for a brick house, then lays Ins sod exactly in the same manner 
a- he would a brick wall, neatly breaking the joints and tilling in and leveling each layer of ..,,1. keeping the wall- perfectly true as they are built, 

otherwise in settling they will fall down unless propped up w i t h poles. We show a photograph of a house 1 rly made in thi- booklet. When 

rightly constructed the four wall- are carried up -olid to the tops of do irs and windows, then timbers laid across where they are to he 1. cated, 
building the sod about six niches higher than the building is designed 10 be when it settli -. the window- and doors are then cut the proper size. 
The wall- being about three feet in thickness are continued up at the cad to form the gable? and a hugi cedar ridge log of mammoth size, from 

thirty to torn feel long and piobablj eighteen inches to two feet through at the butt, is placed, on thes< The logs ami other timber 

used have probably been hauled From fifty to one hundred mile- from cedar canyons, located -till further from civilization. From this "ridge log" 
to the side wall- are laid -mailer cedar or ash pole- to act a- rafters and on these are placed (if possible) tine willow hrush procured from 51 

near-bj stream. Then a layer of sod 1- fitted verj do ely over tins brush, grass side down, then another layer of sod is placed the same way 
on top oi the first, carefully overlapping the joints in the lower sod covering, then a wagon load or two of chv i- hauled and spread over this. 
which generally turns the rain \.r\ nicely until tin housi settles and the mice work little air holes up through the sod, then these holes must he hunt, d 

out and stopped and more clay added until u i- a- other roofs we have seen, nearly two feet thick A good -oil house is very warm and com- 
fortable m winter and cool in summer, and it i- these "beginnings in life" we are here illustrating, I ither with the more modern and handsome 

farm houses and barns which arc taking their places, .1- a result of the energy and thrift of the sturdy pioneers who inhabited them. 

Tin opening up'of a farm on the plains is a very simple one a- coin,. and with that of the forest. First the earth i- turned Over with a plow 
on the -pot Iron, which tin,' -ml wa- removed with which to construct the h'OUSe, and in this is planted the -eed- for the family garden: then 
the field is Ian 1 out in lines a- desired, the -ml being turned over with the plow and between each alternate -trip of sod grains of corn are planted, 
-o that m a -hurt time a field ha- been plowed and planted, and the following year thi- field 1- in excellent condition after plowing for the raising 

of any grain crop desired, and the farmer 1- well along on the high road to prosperity. It wa- not always an easy problem, however, for there 
were seasons of drouth, grasshoppers, wind-storms and other difficulties ti contend with in early days, hut here, as nearly everywhere in this 
grand and glorious America, success crown- the effort- of the sturdy, persistent and careful toiler, a- will be seen from the illustrations that fol- 
li iv and w Inch -peak for themselves 

The author of tin- 1 klet, Mi S I 1 Butcher, of Kearney. Nebraska, was himself a pioneer of the plains country, emigrating in 1880 from 

LaSalle County, Illinois, to the beautiful Middle Loup Valley in Nebraska, where he still owns a farm, and it i- P. hi- experiences at that 
time and down through the years which have followed that the public are indebted for his wonderfully interesting "Pioneer History of 

Cnster County and Short Sketches of Earlj Hay- in Nebraska," a four-hundred page 1 k published by him in 1901, and which ha- created much 

favorabli comment for the historical incidents it narrate-. Mr. Butcher has spent eighteen years of arduous effort in collecting the beautiful 
ph. tographs tor reproduction and the interesting . 1 plains life, which we herein publish, and we will soon have the pleasure of presenting 

his latest 1 k ol everal hundred pages, entitled "The Cowboy Shorn of Hi- Hoofs and Horns, or Fiftj Years Hustling on the Western Plains," 

for the entertainment and information of people who would rather read truth than fiction. In thi- 1 klet you will get a few of the illustrations 

ami -ketches ,,l a charactet such a- will appear 111 the complete 1 k, which is nearly ready for the printers. Ill addition to being one of the 

most expert landscape photographers in tin- country, Mr. Butcher has the happy faculty of securing and transmitting to paper the interesting inci- 
dents ,,f all -hade- ot experience, of hi- own and others, from the most amusing to the most tragic, that go t. make up the life history of the 

pioneer of the plain-, and presents them like hi- prop .graph-, bright, clear, sparkling and with a fidehte to life that with these photographs con- 

stitute a unto 1 oi the dailj life scenes and incident- of the-,, plainsmen from the time thej became the sturdy pioneers in their vigorous 

yoiingei days, to the present time ,,| comfort and happiness that now sirroitnd these same people, bringing it- reward for all their toil and 

sacrifice, producing that grand character in history- the typical American. 

''•.I THh: PUBLISHERS. 

Engrai Inge n> • . 

Franklin Engraving Co. 
Chicago 









_»_ 











No. I shows a cowboy bringing in a maverick for the boss for which he gets so much a head extra on his wages. No 2 shows Olie, the Swede, who 
traded his oxen to Sizer. No. 3 is a coyote sneaking home after daylight with his tail between his hind legs trying to invent some story to tell 
his wife when he gets home. * * * No. 4 is the champion jackrabbit at the coursing meet at Kearney in 1903, being run several times and suc- 
ceeded in getting away. Photographed by courtesy of N. P. Hansen. No. 5 is Miss Sadie Austin, the most fearless cowgirl in Cherry County, 
Nebraska, and her favorite pony, and she is one of the most accomplished performers on the piano in western Nebraska. 



It was in May, 1882. after the first pioneers had made a dim shadowy trail, that I first found my way over the border 
into Custer Count}'. Neb. I use the word "found" properly, for it was an actual discovery of a most difficult way into the then 
promised land. 

In company with John M. Morrison I left the main road leading from Kearney to this upper country at a point in Buffalo 
county, in Pleasant valley, and went north through the hills, following a dim trail which persisted in growing dimmer and 
which, as darkness came on, disappeared altogether. Our hope was to reach McEndeffer's, on the Muddy, that night, so 




N°. ' The peculiar thing we wish to draw your attention in about diis man is his grasping disposition Farmer Corntassell lives near a big 

cattle ranch, and the funny thing aboul it is his cows always happen to raise twin calves. 
No 2. Farmer Corntassell is gazing anxiously out across the prairie in the direction of the neighboring ranch, thinking he may have to make a 

run 01 il. 
No. 3. Branding a maverick. Another way of starting a herd. 

X". 1 Bacheloi I f the Sperry Bros., nearMerna, Nebraska, [887. 

No. 5. Wheal field of Jacob Klein on tin- line of the Union Pacific, near Gibbon, Nebraska, fuly 4, [904 



we pressed on, over high lulls and down long winding .•anon., one of us walking in front of the team to figure out the trail 
and the other driving as directed l>> the guide. 

A more jloomy and desolate prospect could hardly be imagined as tin- shades of night began t.> come down over the In-own 
prairie tumbled an.] piled aboul in the must hap-hazard manner; high hills, long terraced ridges, each seeming higher than 
the other, two "tenderfeet" alone amidsl all this waste, was enough to make one wish himself back to civilization again. Finally 




No. I. The home of C. B. Reynolds, the honanza farmer. 

No. 2. Home of S. C. Bassett, near Gibbon, on the Woodriver valley. Mr. Bassett is one of the most public-spirited men in Nebraska. Came to 

Gibbon with the soldiers' hd. colony in 1871 (seventy-five families lived in cars furnished by the U. P. railroad till houses could be erected 

on their claims). Mr. Bassett was elected superintendent of the dairy department for the Nebraska commission at World's Fair, St. Louis, 

1904 
No. 3 Home and mother. 
No. 4 A typical dugout. 
No. 5. Snake River falls in Cherry County, Nebraska. Thirty feet fall. In early days this falls was a hiding place for horse thieves, there being 

a large cave under falls. 



we struck a broader trail, made by the stock, leading to the ranch, and had less difficulty in keeping- the way. I saw some- 
thing- just ahead of me in the darkness I took for a post, and believing we had come to a post, I felt on both sides for the wire and 
found none, and discovered to my dismay that it was a stove-pipe and still warm. By the time my investigations had resulted in 







Homestead of Miss Lizzie Chrisman on Lillian creek, township i8, range jo. She can be seen second figure from left in picture; also her three 
sisters, Lutie, Hattie and Ruth. Photo, [886. Has since changed her name to Mrs. K II Sargent. Lives at Walworth, Nebraska. Her hus- 
band runs a general store and a cream station for the Beatrice Creamery Company, shipping almui 4.000 pounds of cream a week 



this warm discover) Morrison was close to me and demanded a reason i'<>r my stop. I explained the nature of my find and sug- 
gested a backing of die team for fear of a tumble through the roof, which would probablj disturb the sleepers below. I had seen 
enough of "dugouts" to know we had discovered one and started on a voyage of discovery. The problem of the lay of the "dugout" 
was soon solved to the satisfaction of all concerned. ( >f course it was dug oul of a hank, but just where the bank ended and the 

house united with it I could not tell, hut I soon discovered that there was ahotit four feet space between the end of the dugout and 
hank, which sloped toward the house. The way I discovered this opening was by the happy one of falling into it. and the wax I 
gained admittance into the house was by rolling down the sloping hank and in at the window, and the way 1 aroused the house- 
hold was by alighting on a promiscuous collection of tinware, which made noise enough to stampede a hunch of plow horses. 




A morning hunt on the Middle Loup river in Nebraska. The hunter is Mr. A. Pulliam, a crack 
behind his saddle. 



shot, as can be seen by the two coyotes strapped 



It was with some misgivings we had sought the hospitality of Mr. McEndeffer. as it will be remembered he was a cattle 
man and in some manner connected with the Olives in the burning of Mitchel and Ketchum. What were my feelings to tie 
precipitated in this fashion into his house and find myself clawing and kicking around among the dish pans and milk pails, 
while a gruff voice was demanding: "Who's there?" "Get out!" "Scat!" "Get a light!" "Get the gun!" and like ex- 
clamatory remarks, interspersed with more or less profanity and a chorus chiming in from other members of the family. 

Had the team fallen through the roof it would have raised no greater row than did my plunge through the window. I 
finally extricated myself from the tinware and frying pans, and beat a hasty retreat under cover of darkness and excitement 
out through the window and around to the door, where I gave a loud rap more in accord with civilized ways, and when a 
light was procured and explanations made, and an inventory taken to find what damage was done, the ceremony of "break- 




Lnoch W. Raymond. Married .1 Sioux woman in 1852 and this is their home mi the Rose Bud agencj in 1902 The author has a history of this 
remarkable man's life as thrilling and romantic as any man that evei lived on the western plains, which will be given complete in hi- latest 

1 k, entitled "The ( owboj Shorn of His Hoofs and Horns, or Fifty Years Hustling on the Western Plains. Chapter IV. There is 

a chapter in Enoch' Raymond's life of a private nature which should come in here. While he is serving as a soldier, hi- services were required 
more in the capacity < f a farmer in supply .main for the horses than ramp duly. At this time having lo do his own cooking, hi- life was 
rather a lonel) one \- a natural consequence hi- h'earl lightly turned to thoughts of lovi n< b gan to cast about t" find a dusky maiden 
of the Simix tribe to preside "\er In- household affairs ami be chief cook and bottle washer in hi- absence, lie, like many other- soldiers, 
thoughl by conforming to the Indian custom of marriage he would be free t" go where In- chose when In- services as a soldier were over, 

Acting on thi- rather lax codi of morals, he SOOn found a coy Indian maiden who innocently put her future welfare and happiness into (hi 

keeping of h'er pale face lover, little suspecting In- intentions, and their days of wedded bliss slipped by in unalloyed happiness, ami Sergeant 
Raymond soon learned that an Indian maiden had a hearl a- pure and loving as la 1 pali face sister who lived toward the rising sun, and 
when Major l.oonn- called him up and said, "Sergeant, I understand you are livine with an Indian woman," the sergeant returned heartily, 

"I am. sir." \ml when he -..id. "Well. Sergeant, 1 command you to take the chaplain and he married according to the rule- ,,f e- 1 \ 1 1 1 ,- 1 < 1 sneiety," 

Raymond complied with far less reluctanc< than he had dreamed possible -is months before. * * * 




No. I is the Indian school at Pine Ridge, South Dakota, taken January, 1891, during the Sioux uprising, as are all the balance of the pictures in 
this group, as the history of that bloody time will be in our new book, title "The Cowboy Shorn of His Hoofs and Horns," soon t< > be 
published. Only titles to pictures will be given here. 

No. 2. Indians drying meat. 

No. 3. General Miles and staff in front of a Cheyenne village. 

No. 4. Wounded Indians, including women and children, in the church at Pine Ridge after the fight at Wounded Knee with' Big Foot's band, 
where 160 Indians, including women and children, were buried in one grave. 

No. 5. Two Indian children 



ing the ice" was not necessary after breaking my head, a milk crock, McEndeffer's cob pipe and several other articles of 
less importance, we were made welcome. 

The next day <>ur journey was uneventful and we put up with C. D. Pelham at or near where the present city of Broken 
Bow now stands. We had seen the puzzle of the innkeeper who could put thirteen men in twelve rooms, but Pelham could 

7 




Ole Johnson's sod house. Photo 1886. 



discount anv such Cheap John mathematical problem as that, as he could easily stow away thirteen men in one small room. 
It is related on good authority that he had a must ingenious waj of making six blankets suffice for a dozen guests. When 
late arrivals wen- read) to retire they were tucked snugly away under a blanket that was deftl) removed from some guesl 
wh" had gone to bed earlier, and. being I'ast asleep, would never know the difference, (if course, if the weather was cold 
the uncovered sleeper was liable to wake up after a time and make a roar, but before this stage was reached the other 
fellow was sound asleep and the covering was restored to the original sleeper. l'.\ shifting the covering judiciously and sys- 
tematically during the night Pelham always succeeded in keeping his guests as warm as a pie in the coldest weather. 

Soon after composing myself in my blankets I felt a crawling, hopping, biting sensation that set all my nerves agoing. 
After turning from side to side a few limes, and some feverish use of the mailed digits on both hands. 1 closed my eyes 

S 




New residence of Ole Johnson. Came to United States from Norway with his mother to Dane County, Wisconsin. Came to Nebraska in 1879, located 
in Round Valley, Township 19, Range 19. We do not have to write in capital letters that this man lives at home. Photo 1904. 



once more with an abiding faith in the "sleep of the just," but it was not to be. With a good, healthy, active flea with a 
ravenous appetite and insatiate desire for blood perched on every square inch of your anatomy, how could it be? 

After considering the case in the most philosophical manner of which I was capable I concluded to take up my bed and 
walk — out into the "stilly night," with the blue vault of heaven for a roof and the glad stars to look down upon me, and 
register the wrongs inflicted upon me by the "madding crowd" 1 fondly hoped I had left behind me. but it was not to be. I 
soon abandoned the bed clothes and sought the top board of a pile of 'lumber and went to sleep, while the fleas huddled to- 
gether in my abandoned bed clothes to await another victim. 

This, gentle reader, was my first experience with fleas. I had to learn he was the aborigine of this new country, that he 
was on the warpath, that he was a common nuisance and an enemy of the settler. I had to learn that he would spill alike 




The oldest house now standing in Buffalo County, lmilt in 1S51) and occupied by William Stor} in t868 when killed by the Indian-. Taken by 
William Nutter as lid.. [869 



the blood of the high and low degree, thai he would bring to naught the pride of the haughty, vex the soul of the virtuous, 
and cause to swear the pious. All had to scratch, anil scratch we did. whether in the seclusion of our own private apart- 
ments or in the brilliantly lighted room where youth and beauty had met. or in the pew or pulpit at church. All had to 
scratch and it was nol considered impolite to scratch any particular part of your anatomy thai happened to lie bitten. 

\l\ oiil\ excuse for making such an extended reference to this most amusing little pest is the fact that no true historj 
of Nebraska could he written without giving him some notice; to the earl) Miller he w a- all and much more than I have 
made him. lint like the aborigines of other countries, he has departed with the conditions that made this his natural home. 
* * * 




New residence of William Nutter, Sr. He now has an orchard of forty acres which hore 3,000 bushels of apples in 1897. 
4.000 bushels of beans, which he sold to McCord & Braidy, Omaha, on track at Gibbon, for $1.10 per bushel. 



In 1888 Mr. Nutter raised 



Standing at Brotherton's old sod store in May, 1882, out over the valley to the west and north one could see a few marks 
that indicated the beginning of a small settlement. A group of "old bachelors" off to the northwest were holding various 
claims in various parts of the valley, but were mostly "batching*' together in Al. Thomas' "dugout," where they discussed 
the future greatness of the country and studied the faces of the four queens they usually held in their hands, while they cog- 
itated upon an improbable consignment of "old maids" to be shipped from the east to supply wives for this miscellaneous 
assortment of "old bachelors." It is only justice to these men who cut such a sorry figure at stag housekeeping to say 
they were all men of liberal education and refined tastes, and to leave behind them the influence of eastern homes and the 
society of women were the worst hardships they had to endure in the "Wild West." 

Fifty years ago there were less than a thousand white people in Nebraska territory. Oh, what a wonderful change! 



LofC. 








John J Downey came to Dale Valley, Nebraska, in 1XN7, Township 18, Range -'-', with a team <>f mules and $12.00. 



To-da) more than a million. The total wealth then was probably $100,000; now between one and two billions. Then there 
was nol a cultivated farm. To-da) there are 125.000 with crops worth $102,000,000. Thru not a factory or not a mile of 
railroad; to-day 5.414 manufacturing establishments with a product worth $144.01)0.1 «ki each year, and 5.700 miles of rail- 
mad. Fifty years ago this summer a single newspaper (The Pladium) published at Bellevue; to-daj 600 newspapers and 
magazines. Fifty years ago not a single school in operation; to-day 10,000 common schools and higher ones by hundreds. 
* 

We could haul a load from Kearney 120 miles for our merchants and thus earn something to live on. The experiences 
of these trips were varied, sometimes disastrous, as when we broke an axle or a wheel; sometimes sad. as when some poor 
settler saw one horse of his team die on the road; sometimes ludicrous. 

12 




New house of John J. Downey, 1904. Has made this elegant home farming and stock-raising. 



I recall one incident of the latter character that happened to me on one of these trips. For the benefit of the uninitiated 
I must begin by saying that the "chuck box" was a most necessary part of a freighter's outfit. To be without your 
"chuck box" meant to be without your living. Stopping places there were on the road, but they provided you only with 
a fire to warm your "chuck" and a soft spot on a dirt floor upon which to spread your blankets. What would some good house- 
wife of the east think if, upon making her appearance in the morning in her kitchen, she should find a half dozen or more 
strange, rough, bewhiskered men using her stove and munching their "chuck" on her table with as much unconcern as if 
they owned the place? Yet this is the way we did, and the lady of the house waited with what patience she could for us to 
clear out before she attempted to prepare the morning meal for her own family. 

The freighter sometimes had his annoyances also. I remember one trip I made in midwinter, with the mercury down 




Grandpa Butcher's pro peel Eoi 1904. Walworth, Nebraska. 



below zero by several long marks. One day we failed to make a stopping place through the cold and snow till a very late 
hour. We ate a cold bite and rolled in our blankets for the night. We were up early, had a fire going in the kitchen stove 
and were busily engaged in thawing out our "chuck," which was frozen as hard as a stone. I had placed a loaf of bread in 
the oven to thaw, and had ni\ coffee made when one of the young ladies of the family appeared, pulled a chair up to the 
opposite >ide of the stove, opened the oven door, and deliberately planted her hare feel on my bread to warm them. How- 
ever 1 did not notice the- humiliating— or shall I sa) honored? position of my loaf until my traveling companion came in 
from attending to our horses and we sat down to our "chuck box" to eat breakfast. Then with innocent confidence 1 reached 
into the oven for my loaf and -rasped a set of warm, fat toes. I got a glimpse of that foot as it rested on my bread. It was 
a lai foot witli short, fat pink toes. 1 could have forgiven the annoyance had the foot been an outline of grace and beauty, 

1 1 




Rounding up a nice bunch of "white faces" on the McDowney ranch. South Loup River, near Georgetown, Nebraska. 



but to be held up for my breakfast by a fat foot with chubby pink toes was too commonplace, so I politely demanded its 
surrender. Of course, the young lady was surprised beyond measure. She had taken my loaf of bread for a brick and I am 
sure I took her for another. 

While recalling incidents of how the pioneers had to get along and make room to accommodate their friends when they 
came to see them, is about as well illustrated by an incident which happened at Loup City in an early day as anything we 
ever saw, and can be vouched for as being absolutely true. Air. W. M. Comstock in telling us the story said: In company 
with D. T. Caswell I started from Mingonia, Boone County, Iowa, in March. 1874. In due course of time came to Loup 
City, the "metropolis of Sherman County, which consisted of a log hotel, kept by C. Y. Rossiter, and a general store of which 
Frank Ingram was proprietor. At this time Frank had some friend come to visit him. His family consisted of himself, 
wife and one child and a hired man and hired girl. The house was small and sleeping room scarce, but Frank's mind was 

15 




Sod house of James Pi< rce, Somerford Postoffice, on Sand Creek, Township 19, Range 18. Photo in 1886. 



active to help him out of the difficulty and provide sleeping apartments for the visitors without seriously inconveniencing the 
family. He went to the room of the hired man and told him that it would be necessary for him to vacate hi-- bed, as In- 
had company that would have to be taken care of. He then went to the room of the hired girl, woke her up and laid the 
situation before her. He said he did not like to make one of them sit up all night, but he thought as they had been keeping 
company and intended to get married anyway they might just as well be married then and there and thus solve the difficulties 
about the beds. This seemed to meet the approval of tin- tun parties most interested and Mr. Ingram being county judge 
issued a license and married them mi the spot. * * 

Among my personal recollections in the summer of 1882 might he given: The ranch I was working on was a typ 
ieal cattle ranch of that time, with few of the conveniences of civilization. The bed bugs thai lurked in the cracks of 

16 




James Pierce and his good wife can be seen in front of their new house, May, 190.J. Mr. Pierce came to Nebraska in 1880 with his family, a wife 
and six sons and two daughters. He was a sailor for many years, cruising for sperm whale in the south Pacific. Had very little capital when 
he arrived and no experience as a farmer, but he and all his children have prospered. 



the cedar logs of which the house was built were enough to stampede a flock of cowboys. We (I mean the cowboys — and 
myself) took our blankets to the hay corrall and slept that part of the night which was not spent in playing "penny ante." 
The men at the ranch were a little rough at times, perhaps, but withal a good-hearted, jolly lot, ready at all times for fun, 
particularly if there was any hazard in it. Upon one occasion, when two men came up near the ranch to do some breaking 
where a tree claim had been located, there was a saddling of horses and filling of Winchester magazines and ten or a dozen 
shadowy forms rode off in the darkness and the next morning nothing was seen of the party that came to do the break- 
ing. I heard afterwards that several gentlemen called on the wouldbe farmers, helped them to hitch up their horses and 
actually went a long way with them to prevent the savage men and beasts of the plains from hurting them. 




Shows the old Reyner sod house, built in 1880, Township 16, Range 20. h has served its purpose and is passing away. 
mi sam< quartei section within 300 feel of old sodj 



See opposite page now 



< >ne day a young man rami' over from the Cole's horse ranch and informed us that an old man who had been working 
for them bad died, and iii justice to him they intended to bury him with the honors pertaining to civilized burials, including 
a funeral oration h\ the Hon. David Cole, and as a preacher was an unknown quantity in thai region, the only spiritual medi- 
um lefl them would be found in a two-gallon jug at the ranch. After these elaborate preparations bad been made by the 
(ules and their men, it was not like these cow nun to plead an excuse to be absent. Now, the house on the Cole ranch was 
not an imposing piece of architecture, neither was it noted for its elaborate housekeeping appointments; one small room, a 
diminutive cook stove, a long-handled frying pan, a few pots and kettles, tin plates and sleeping room on the floor, a box that 
served tin- double purpose of dining table and a convenience for playing cards, just about completed the "outfit." It will 
readily be seen that those who bad the funeral preparations in charge would meet a. difficulty in these.' cramped quarters to 
carry on the ordinary affairs of the house, in caring for half a dozen live cowboys, to say nothing about one dead one. 




Residence of Eli Armstrong, who came to Westerville, Nebraska, in 1882, a poor boy with a well 
boring— not for oil— but water, and has "got there Eli" with both feet, as the photo will show. 



auger. He applied himself industriously to 



,nn= f\i 1 y C , an V° tlc P" n * of solutlon when the tim e arrived for rolling blankets and sleep. Here were six stalwart 
sons of the plain who feared no living man, but every one refused to sleep with-as thev termed it— "his giblets the corpse." 
binally the problem was solved in a characteristic way by standing the corpse up in a corner and opening" the door, which, 
when swung- open across this corner completely hid it from view. Therefore, when the boys assembled the next day from 
the neighboring ranches to participate in the ceremonies, the evidence of a funeral was not in a corpse present on a stretcher. 
but rather in the two-gallon jug on the table. Believing the funeral to be a hoax to get the boys together for a big time in 
which the jug was to play a prominent part, one of the boys offered to bet a ten that no curj.se could be shown. ( If curse the 
bet was taken and an Irishman belonging to the Cole ranch by the expressive name of "Reddy" closed the <\nuv and re- 



19 




Showing the stock corrall of J. II. Ullam, Milburn, Nebraska. In upper right hand corner appears the photo oi an old "razorback" from the 
Kansas City stock yards, captured by the foreman of the Kansas City View Company, and used b\ permission This is the kind of hog 
that roots oul the second row of potatoes through the fence. It is needless to tell the intelligent reader that this animal is out of his element 

in the nhiius country. 



vealed the corpse standing in the corner. The evidence was prompt and convincing and the ten was paid over on the spot. 
The old man was finally laid in his grave with a bottle on one side containing his share of the contents of the 
jug and one on the other side containing a slh> of paper on which was his real name and his former home. He had revealed 
both just before he died, lie had evidentl) been hiding on account of some crime committed somewhere. The bottle contain- 
ing his name probabl) remains buried with him yet. but the bottle containing the spirits was dug tip before tin- next morning 
1>\ the boys in order to relieve a distressing thirst occasioned by the supply in the jug running short, as confessed by one 
of them afterward. 

20 




The enormous corn crib of G. W. Farmer, near Merna, Nebraska, in 1902, containing 6,000 bushels of corn raised by himself and son. Do not 
get it into your mind that this is an extraordinary crop. It is the crib I call your attention to, which is as large as all out of doors. We 
would smile to see eastern states crib corn this way without having it rot in the crib. 



These wild roysterers of the prairie concluded that the day could not be better ended than by having a little fun at the 
expense of some living man. "Reddy" was the shining mark that attracted universal attention. It was well known that 
"Reddy" was not afraid of any man that was alive and that he was a dangerous man to "monkey with," but it was equally 
well known that he feared a ghost to the point of frenzy when his superstitious fears were aroused. A game of "penny 
ante" was started and "Reddy" and some of the other boys engaged, while the rest were hatching up a plot that was to be 
the undoing of the Irishman and provide fun for the boys. * * * As the shades of evening began to steal down over 
the sand hills, one of the boys proposed a rest and either sing a song or tell a story. "Reddy." being a singer, favored sing- 
ing, but the rest being in the plot favored story-telling and some one was designated to begin and it proved to be a most 




?H ■■.-&$'* 



i$$k 




>t> 



v* 










S.-ti^s 




Showing the mower outfit of Charles B. Reynolds, near Kearney, Nebraska, on the Plat) Valley. He is what is known as a "bonanza farmer." In 
[898 he fed 20,000 sheep; in 1902 fed p,ooo heep; in [903 fed 25,000 sheep and raised 900 pigs. In [904 he has built seven miles of hog- 
tight fence, and will have nearly 2,000 Im.us, 1 >i jj and little. Has 1,6 en of fine corn, 400 acres "i small grain and cutting about 400 acres 
oi alfalfa. Five year-, ago Mr. Reynolds was a poor man. To the young man in the far east, who farms from three to ten acres of ground, 
and puts the larger share ol thi crop in the loft of the old l"k r house, and -(ill thinks the cowboys and Indians control ilii- country, let me saj 
come ""t and see E01 yourself, and if we have told you a wrong story will pa) your expenses. 



grewsome tale of a ghost. The subject of ghosts being introduced, it was quite natural thai each in turn should toll a ghost 
story also, ami at the same time make it more horrifying than the one that preceded it. Had a collection of these tales been kept 

and published I am of the opinion that it would have made one of the most unique 1 ks ever placed on the market, and a classic 

in ghost lore. As the darkness became more intense and the stories mure blood-curdling "Reddy's" flaming shock of red hair 

seemed to stand on end. his mouth was wide open and his eyes found no resting place, hut searched out every dark corner 

with evident fear. It soon became evident that "Redds" was in "tone," and that his hour had arrived. Dave, feeling a little 



sat 



_. 


- 


25S5555 HEPH 


■M 


I 






| 




^^ n 


i 


. 


^ 


■ - B rH 


r4 




S^trw 


«fi 


BBS 


^™— u 


B££ 






■Hrf sj — " 


n 


.« 


*#*■' 




- 1 •'/ 




* 


¥*' 




, 





Showing the large barn on H. D. Watson's ranch, near Kearney, Nebraska. View looking south shows several of the ranch houses and Piatt 
river in the distance. This ranch has 3,000 acres of alfalfa, 250 acres in orchard and is the most talked about and widest advertised ranch 
on the line of the Union Pacific to the coast. This barn is the largest in Nebraska, if not in the world. 



fear of "Reddy's" quick and accurate aim with his six-shooter, thought best to put a question to him before retiring to do 
the ghost act, so he said: "Reddy, what would you do if you saw a ghost?" "Do?" said Reddy, "I would plug at it six 



toimes wid me gun as fast as I could." "Now," said Dave, "let me give 



little advice. Don't you ever draw your gun 



on a ghost. I knew a fellow out west that undertook to do that, and when he threw up his gun to shoot his arm withered 
in a second, and he never got over it." While this grave statement of Dave might have protected him, yet it is a fact that 
the boys on some pretext managed to get "Reddy's" gun away from him before the ghost appeared. * 

Space will not permit us to continue this narrative of an exceedingly amusing incident which will be found complete in 



23 



m 




'I'll.' Little Milk Maid. Tin- is not a picture gotten up for the occasion, bul one we could nol resist taking of our little 8 year-old niece, Miss Allic 
Butcher, milking her favorite cow Background shows a field of growing wheat. Looking west on Mi,!, IK- Loup Vallej 

the new book wo are soon to publish entitled "The Cowboy Shorn of His Hoofs ami Horns, or Fifty Years' Hustling on 
the Western Plains," which will also contain hundreds of other very interesting incidents beautifully illustrated, and which 
will give the reader a very excellent conception of life on the plains. 

In the summer of [860 William Nutter and family arrived in Omaha, which at that early day was a mere village. They 
met many more Mormons who were only waiting to gather enough of the faithful together to protect themselves against the 
Indians. (The government not allowing less than sixty wagons to start.) A man here tried to get Nutter to take a home- 
stead joining < Imaha. And far hotter would it have been for himself and family had he done so, a- now large husiness blocks 
and palatial residences cover tin- entire tract. 



24 





New residence of T. J. Butcher, who came to Nebraska and located on the Middle Loup Ri\er. Township jo. Range _»o. in 1880, and is now able 
to take life easy in his declining years. And the grandchildren like to gather around "grandma's" knee and have her tell about early days in 
Nebraska. 



They stayed here about one week and purchased a wagon and two yoke of oxen and were soon fairly launched on the great 
"American desert." The guide would ride ahead and find a camping place for the pilgrims with fuel and water and feed 
for the stock. And the many trials and hardships endured would fill a book. But one little adventure will suffice to give the 
reader an idea of life on the western plains at this early day, dangerous as well as amusing. On this particular night the guide- 
was ahead looking out a camping place. They were still on the level plains of the Platte river. It was about nine o'clock ami 
the weary travelers were expecting to hear the command to go into camp. Men were walking along beside their tired oxen 
urging them on with sharp goads and large "bull whips" which cracked and snapped iti a vicious manner on the still night 
air". All of a sudden a great commotion was heard in the rear mingled with the hoarse shouts of the men and terrified screams 

25 




of women and children, half drowned by barking of dogs and bellowing of cattle. Each moment new voices take up the cry. 
The noise comes nearer with the swiftness of a cyclone and the oxen in front who but a moment before seemed hardly able to 
draw their loads, slick up their heads and sniff the air suspiciously, while their drivers, knowing full well what is coming, 
spring to their heads vainly trying to stop them, but too late. They might just as well have tried to stop a Johnstown flood 
as their own oxen dash away in the wild stampede which sometimes happens on the plains. \nd the drivers find it lively work 
to keep out of the way of the frightened beasts as the) dash b) with shrieking women and children clinging to the wagons, 
while furniture and household goods are scattered in every direction. The excitement was great while it lasted, hut of short 
duration, as the oxen soon slowed down to a walk as if nothing had happened. The trouble was all caused by the driver of the 
last wagon, wanting to smoke, scratched a match and the sudden light frightened his oxen which started to run ami stam- 
peded the whole train. 

Mrs. Nutter had tied her eleven months old baby (little Will) in the wagon on the bed, with a rope around his waist, 
as Will expresses it in telling the story, something like you would tie a calf, so that he could reach neither side of the wagon, 
which probably saved his life. Mrs. Nutter had taken her milk pail and was walking along beside the wagon intending to 
milk when the train stopped before the cows scattered (which were being driven along behind). And when the oxen stam- 
peded, of course' that started the loose herd, which ran over Mrs. Nutter, knocked her down and tramped her milk pail to a 
shapeless mass and it would seem almost a miracle that she was not killed. 

On arriving in Utah the glowing accounts of the Mormon elders faded to 1"' realized in Mr. Nutter's case, and after two 
years the last straw which broke the camel's hack was. as M,-. Nutter by accident learned, the secret work of the Mormon 
church and fearful oath (which was too fearful to repeat) which hail to he taken in order to become a full-fledged Mormon. 
When the) passed through the Endowment House and that, after taking this oath it was sure death to try to leave the country. 








i j 



Winter scene of Uncle Swain's new residence. He had very little of this world's goods to -tart, but has prospered far beyond the average man 
and now owns one of the finest ranches in northwestern Nebraska. His career will be followed in our new book, "The Cowboy Shorn of His 
Hoofs and Horns, or Fifty \ears Hustling on the Western Plains." 



according to the Mormon religion, by men known as Danites, or Brigham's avenging angels, Nutter at once determined to 
take his family and leave while he still had the opportunity. J. G. Allen, a Mormon, who had passed through the Endow- 
ment House had married a mere miss of sixteen years, which so enraged wife No. I that family jars were very frequent, and 
notwithstanding the consequences that must follow if discovered (as "she too had passed through the Endowment House) 
the brave woman was willing to take her chances of escape rather than see this chit of a girl come into her home to rule and 
usurp the affections of her liege lord. Allen seems to have been as anxious as Mrs. Alien No. i that she depart in peace, 
and made a bargain with Nutter for three sacks of flour and an old musket to secrete his wife and get her out of the country 
and reach of the Danites, and as every avenue was carefully guarded it was a delicate undertaking." Allen took his wife and 




Lee Bros.' cattle ranch (near Brown Lee, Cherry County, Nebraska.) 

departed in the darkness of the night, preceded Nutter about three days' journey, traveling at night and secreting them- 
selves in the day time. They reached Weber canon where the) remained in concealment, their hearts beating faster when- 
ever a noise was heard in the deep, dark canon, which indicated that some one was passing along the trail which might prove 
to be Danites, as it was more than likely their flight bad been discovered ere this and ii was a great relief to them when the 
ox teams of Nutter hove in sight and his familiar voice rang out loud and clear, with his "Gee! Haw!" to his oxen Mrs. 
Allen was quicklj transferred to the wagon and after a tearful (?) farewell Allen returned to his new found dove, while the 
Nutter family continued on their journey, fully realizing the fearful risk they were taking in befriending this poor woman, 
as in all probability they would all be killed were she found in their company by Brigham's avenging angels, and only for the 



28 




S ^^^i^^^^^&^^^^l^ n ^ 1- J-w.^ 6 4 .ores of .and as Hd, over 5 co peop.e 
the people have in the future of our country. The p r t „ , low eft L Th P '- T *"' tC " S b f ter than words wh *t confidence 

.on g hatred poet, D a „ iel Sa g e, of Cal.iwav, who wi,,^ £&££? thfwo^e^^owth £ figgS^ ^^23,^ 



'Way out upon the western plains 

Not many years ago. 
By civilization unrestrained 

Roamed the elk and buffalo; 
"Mere Indians camped on every stream 

In quest of fish and game, 
And fought their blood" battles there 

1'or conquest and for fame; 

No explorations had been made, 

l.ie climate was unknown, 
And all in silent slumber lay 
ll „ Nature's laws had sown; 
Where the waters of the Plattes and Loups, 

O er sand and pebbles flow. 
It all belonged to far-off France 

Une hundred years ago. 



Civilization gave no echo then, 

Not a cultured voice arose, 
Unconquered Nature silent lay, 

In undisturbed repose; 
The tables, hills and valleys wide 
_ W ith verdure bright and green, 
Then in a state of wildness lay. 

All tranquil and serene. 

Uncle Sam then bought the land 

And had it all surveyed, 
Where civilization's greatest foe 

In war paint was arrayed. 
Where played the Indian' girls and boys 

Untutored and untaught, 
Ami savage trihes of wild red men 

lheir many battles fought. 



By Dan Sage, the "Long Haired Poet.' 



The buffalo and the elk are gone. 

The Indian is corralled. 
To live a life of quietude 

By force is now compelled. 
1 he country all fmm east to west. 

With civilization teems. 
And trade and commerce onward roll 

In constant, steady streams. 

A wondrous change has taken place 

In a score and a half of years; 
Where solitude once reigned supreme 

A different scene appears; 
"]i?J* the rcd Indian roamed at will 

With tomahawk and gun. 
Broad fields of waving golden grain 

Now ripen in the sun. 



The land is dotted o'er with towns, 

1 he railway passes by, 
And voices by the telephone 
To neighbors quickly fly; 
the school house and the church are lure-. 

And they have come I" stay, 
Ti> Christianize and educate 
I ! " young, the fair, the gay. 

The lawless all have moved away, 

I he cow boy met his I 
And all our moral- will compare 

With those of any statl ; 
Wc are growing greater every day 

As Father Time unfold 
Our slate at the present time 

Contains one million souls. 



2 9 




Custer County Exhibit :u Pair, 1886. 



quick wit of Mrs. Nutter they would never have reached Buffalo County, Neb., and joined their friends on the beautiful valley 
of W 1 river, but we are anticipating. * 

They traveled all day without accidenl seeing nothing of the Danites and the next da) the wagon broke down. Mrs. 
Allen was quickly concealed in a nearby thicket and her meals carried to her. Mr. Nutter had one wild yoke of oxen which 
he had to leave his wife to herd and look after their three children, < Hive, John. Will and Mrs. Allen, while he returned to Salt 
Lake with the broken oxen to procure another wagon. The next day three men. Danites. stopped and enquired where the 
woman was who rode with them from Weber canon. Mrs. Nutter had been expecting something of this kind and had de- 
termined to outwit them if possible. She replied: "A woman did ride with us from Weber canon but when we broke down 
she was in a hum. to go on and caught a ride with another wagon." Mrs. Allen was secreted near enough to hear the con- 
versation and almost fainted with fear, and it is needless to say that the poor woman was overjoyed to see the Danites hastily 
depart in the direction she was supposed to be fleeing. In due time Mr. Nutter returned and the journey was resumed and 
a sharp lookout was kept, but the Danites were never seen again. 

The) reached Fort Kearney in the fall of the same year and proceeded to join their friends on Wood river at a point 
where the thriving little town of Shelton now stands, which at this earl) da) consisted, of two crude cotton wood log build- 
ings, one about 30x30 feet, the other about 24x24 feet, occupied by - I 'eck as a store and dwelling. 1 lis stock consisted 
of a small amount of household necessities and a large supply of Red Jacket Bitters. 

Mrs. Allen continued her journey to friends in Cincinnati, Ohio. As soon as the opportunity offered, Nutter bought 
the improvements of a squatter by the name of Solomon Richmond (a bachelor), who lived about two miles east of Peck's 
store, on Wood river, for a small sum of the root of all evil, while Solomon at once squatted on another claim on the Piatt 

.30 




Jan ili cover sod-houjse on 'lie Mudy, 1886. 



river (which is now owned by Geo. Misner. of Shelton). A few years later Solomon married a daughter of Win. Story 
(who was killed by Indians while on a buffalo hunt in 1868). Solomon raised a family and died about 1886. 

An incident which happened to him about 1862 (a year before selling to Nutter) may be of interest to our readers. One 
evening while loitering near his little log cabin he espied seven Sioux warriors approaching cautiously. As soon as they 
saw they were discovered they began to make friendly motions, but Solomon did not like the looks of the painted redskins 
and made a dash for cover, lie sprang inside his cabin, shut the door, and dropped a large wooden bar across it. seized an 
axe and stood on the defensive. The house was only about 12 x 14 feet, but built very strong, with one small half window, a 
fireplace and an old fashioned chimney attached onto the back side of the building. The savages were soon at the door 
trying to force it open, but the stout slabs resisted their efforts. One of their number cautiously approached the little win- 
dow, saw Solomon flattened up against the side of the building, axe in hand, and with a disgusted grunt he retired and for a 
time all was still, while the Indians held a pow-wow. In a short time (which seemed several times as long as it was) 
he heard a noise on the roof which caused cold chills to creep up his spinal column and turn his hair the wrong way. as 
he well understood the next point of attack. The Indians were intending to come down the chimney. In a few moments 
he could hear them tearing away the sticks and mortar with a recklessness which plainly showed they meant liuvinvss. and 
did not care for expenses :; * There was some fire in the fireplace and luckily Solomon had prepared a Kit of dry inflammable 

rubbish for morning. This he dashed onto the smouldering coals, snatched off his broad-brimmed hat and began to fan the 
lire vigorously and his efforts were soon rewarded by seeing huge clouds of smoke and flames ascending the chimney, and 
the noise on the roof ceased, the savages having been foiled by the quick witted pioneer. The position he had taken b) the door 
and thickness of the wall prevented them from shooting him from the small window. They knew the pale face had the advantage 

J 1 




Uncle Swain killing grasshoppers in his corn, 1X75. Uncle Swain for a moment was paralyzed when the hoppers began to light, but getting his 
breath, he cul a large willow brush and proceeded down a corn row, killing his thousands at ever) swing of his brush. After proceeding 
aboul too yards down a corn row he stopped to rest and found he had just as many hoppers behind as in front of him, and when the hoppers 
left that field then were only a few stubs standing to show corn had ever been planted there. 



An [ndian scarce!) ever cares to attack one of them unless he lias the advantage. They left the house and proceeded to the 

corrall, killed both his oxen and cutting out their tongues rolled the carcasses into \\ 1 river and with a few defiant veils 

left. 

But to return: Nutter proceeded to build an addition to the little log house, aboul [2x18, and prepared to pass the winter of 
1863. By this time there were about twenty-five families scatteredup and down Wood river in a distance of about 20 miles, as fol- 
lows: Sell inn in Richmond, Jim Jackson. Edward < llliver, Alex Ross, Jack < >l liver, Peck, Jim < '1 liver. Bob ( '1 fixer. August 

Myers, \Ym. Story, Hod Tague, Dick Moore, William Mutter, Sr., I'at Moore, Anthony Moore, Henry Dugdale, Jim Boyd, 

Jack Stats. - - Fisher, - - Alexander. Thomas Morgan, Geo. Thomas, Iller, Ed. O'Brine, Cook Joe 

Owens (stage station, one mile east of 1'ecks' store), Bill Carter, Hank Kohler. Mr. Nutter worked that winter whenever he 
could get a job from the settlers already lure. I lis house was completed in November, hauling the cottonwood logs four miles 
from the I 'latte river. He and another man by the name of filer concluded to go over on Prairie creek, north of Wood river about 
seven miles, near the bluffs, to cut dry wood which had probably been killed by fire. They started on Wednesday, taking provisions 
for three days, intending to come home Saturday evening, but Saturday evening came and they failed t<> put in an appearance. 
\s soon as it was dark Mrs. Nutter saw main small tires twinkling and shooting Lip near the \er\ place where her husband 
and filer were at work. She instantly recognized it as being a large body of men in camp, presumablj Indians. While 

3 2 




View on the old Brighton Ranch, near Georgetown, Neh., now owned by Dr. Victor Kaufman, of Omaha. 



she stood with fascinated eyes watching the many little bright points of light, some of her nearest neighbors, Jim Jackson 
among them, came up, having seen the lights and were anxious to know if Nutter and Iller had got home. Finding they had 
not, they stayed and watched with her, fearing the worst, and not a gleam of light shone from a settler's cabin on that night and 
all was anxiety as the hours crept slowly by. They talked in whispers, starting at every sound, expecting every moment to hear 
the Indian war whoop. About midnight while they stood watching the little fires, which were fast dying out, they heard the 
crackling of the underbrush on the opposite bank of the river, only a few rods away, and every man threw his gun forward 
ready for action, and the ominous click of the locks which broke the silence showed that every man was ready to sell his life 
as dearly as possible in defense of his home if necessary. A dark object appeared on the opposite bank and plunged into the 
stream, and ten trusty rifles were pointed full at the object and the stern command "Halt!" came from one of the settlers, and 
after a painful silence of a few seconds, which seemed to the strained nerves of the excited pioneers an eternity, the answer 
came, "Don't Shoot! it is Nutter/' The exclamations of joy and thanksgiving can better be imagined than told by the settlers 
after nearly a third of a century. * * * 

And as soon as Nutter had crossed to the south side of the river, strong arms assisted him up the steep hank and every- 
one wanted to talk at once, shake his hand and inquire the meaning of the many lights. Nutter said they had worked till nearly 
quitting time, not dreaming of danger. All at once they discovered a large band of Sioux Indians going into camp in the 
timber, coming with so little noise that the}' might almost have dropped down from the clouds. Fortunately they had not been 
discovered and dropped swiftly and silently over the bank of the creek' ran rapidl) along till the\ found a beaver hole par- 

33 







\ party of coyote hunters < n the McDonald ranch, Georgetown, Neb., just coming in from a day's sport with two coyotei strapped to their saddles 
Vfou will notice they carry no guns tin . >>\.>ir- having ln-i-.i caught by the dogs 



tially caved out. The) crawled into this and concealed themselves till dark and then managed to slip away withoul being dis- 
covered by the savages. 

The next spring (1864) the) broke sod and planted vegetables and sod corn. The summer passed and the settlers did 
thi best they could, having quite good crops and the corn was fast ripening when an Indian scare was started and entirely de 
populated the settlement, on!) two men remaining, James Boyd and August Myers, who kept the mail station in 1864. 

( hie nf the settlers by the name of Cook had keen tip at Fort Keame\ and the commanding officer sent word that the 
Indians were going to attack the settlement to take whatever they could with, them and what firearms they hail and go to 
Peck's store and do the best they could. This new- came in the middle of the night and as the messenger scarcer) stopped 
lum', enough to give an intelligent account of what was going to happen a general stampede was the result. In a heav) 

34 




A cowboy making an old man dance by shooting at his feet. 



rainstorm sleepy children were hurried into their clothes by the frightened women, while the men hurriedly yoked their oxen to 
the wagons and loaded necessary provisions and bedding and leaving their stuck in their corrals made all haste to Peck's 
store where they all had arrived safe by the next morning, and those who arrived first went industriously to work moulding 
bullets for their muzzle-loading rifles, expecting that the Indians would attack the store about daybreak. 

In the excitement of starting an amusing little incident happened that delayed the Nutter family for some little time, 
and for the time caused as much sorrow and agony of mind (while it lasted) as the "old maid" endured when she got to think- 
ing if she was married and had twins and a stick of wood had fallen on them. Mrs. Nutter had aroused the children and hur- 
ried them into their clothes and rushed them into the wagon, and in the excitement of getting ready, which was augmented 
by the settlers rattling by and calling on them to hurry, the start was made, and one of the twins was left behind. Little 
four-year-old Willie had roused up. rubbed his sleepy little eyes and thought more about his sleep than the fear of Indians, 
had dropped back in his little cracker-box cradle and went to sleep, and the family had proceeded about one and a half miles 
before his absence was discovered. Then such a time — Well we draw the curtain over this scene and let the reader imag- 
ine the feelings of old as well as the young Nutters as the oxen were headed homeward again and put to the top of their 
speed (which, however, was not so fast as the flyer on the Union Pacific, which now passes daily over the same ground). 
The rain was something fearful, and it was so dark the road could he seen only by the flashes of lightning, which sent its 
lurid light out over the trackless wilderness, and they almost expected to see the tufted heads of the Cheyennes raise up out 
of the long prairie grass to bar their way at every flash of lightning, while even now it might be too late to rescue little Willie 
from the savage foe. An ox is an animal that will newer leave a beaten trail unless forced to do so, and in due course oi tune 

35 



ft 

I 



H 


I 


-5/ i--. 




1 






■ ■ \'/ 



\ stranger who is loi king on finally takes a hand and makes the cowboj dance 



tin' fuss tliat was being made 



brought up at tin Nutter cabin, where little Will was found quietly sleeping, unconscious of 
for his sake. 

All that day the little band of settlers remained at Peck's store waiting for the Indians who did not come. That after- 
noon John Nutter and his father ventured out to look after their stock left in the corral. Winn about one-half mile from 
home the) saw a man riding at full speed, his long hair streaming wildly in the breeze, whipping his horse with bis hat at 
every jump, and as he came nearer they recognized Jim Jackson, who shouted as he dashed by, without checking hi*- horse 
"Three hundred Indians on the north side of the river." Of course John and hi> father were not long in reaching the banks 
of Wood river. They plunged into the stream, just leaving their hum- and mouth above water, and remaining a long time. 
Finally Mr. Nutter became tired of his position, so he cautiousl) climbed into a tree and took a look out over the level plain 
Mr found that Jackson had seen a herd of buffalo and in his excitement had taken them for Indians. The settlers stayed 
at Peck's store three days and then gathered up their stock and such of their belongings as they could take with them, in 
most part went to Omaha, whirr the) separated in almost every direction. But, strange as it may seem, nearly to a man the) 
found their way hack- to \\ 1 river and further along in this narrative will be heard from. 

William Nutter took his family and went tn Canada and from there to England, but only remained a few months, returned 
to Philadelphia, secured work again with Boyd & Taylor, and in [869 again returned to Buffalo County, where he stil! re- 
side-. \ photograph of the old log house, which appears at the head of this sketch, is the eldest house now standing in Buf 
fain County, built in [859 and occupied by William Story when killed by the Indians in (868. Mr. Nutter and his wife 

and part of his children and grandchildren can be seen in front, and little Will, now grown t.i manh 1. with a famil) -1 

his own, can he seen at the extreme right of the pi Inn. 






THE PAST and THE PRESENT 



ONLY ONE 

NIGHT TO 

UTAH 

TWO NIGHTS 

TO 
CALIFORNIA 
AND OREGON 







RUNS EVERY 

DAY IN THE 

YEAR 

CONNECTING 

EAST AND 

WEST 



E. L LomDx 

G. P. 4T. A. 

OMAHA, 

NEB 



THE OLDEST INHABITANT ON LINE OF UNION PACIFIC 



The oldest inhabitant — admire h 
or* his kind — mighty, majestic! 

He has braved the mountain torrents He has laughed at heaven's deep 
rolling thunder. His eyes have given responsive fires to the lightning's flash. 
The tornado has only combed out to fineness his shaggy mane. In protection of 
his kind he has hurled splendid defiance at his cruel foeman — man. 

He is a type par excellence in the animal kingdom; type of courage, power, 
nobility. For centuries he has dominated plain and mountain, forest and canyon — 
free, fearless - 

Before the Indian, the scout, the pioneer, the settler — he was. He has wit- 
nessed all their advances, encroachments, innovations, while he fought for lite, 
land, liberty. The territory was his, his sacred heritage, and he battled tor it as 
the primal, righful and superb aborigine 

But the man is unfeeling, selfish, destructive, when nature, animate or inani- 
mate, stands in the way of his enterprise and enrichment. And so the animal ruler 
of the wide, wild western world was hunted, driven back and brought to the verge 
of extermination. 

It would challenge the fine artistic talents of a Rosa Bonheur to portray the 
qualities and nobilities of such a matchless specimen ot the beast creation, and then 



The last of his race — what pity! King his melancholy yet defiant grandeur as he witnessed the merciless extinction of his 



his 

race. 

Man, however, is conqueror, and time is the paramount consideration. Time 
is health and wealth, and to time everything succumbs. The Buffalo, the primal 
"Lord of the Land," has been driven back to his animal fastnesses in obedience to 
the law of advancing civilization and the imperative demand of time, the speediest 
time. The railroad meets the demand of time, and, specifically, the Union Pacific 
meets the demand of the speediest time. 

Formerly the race across the great western portion of the continent was bv the 
horse and the caravan. But something better was to come. Over twin lines of 
steel, climbing peaks, threading canyons, covering vast plains, came the first engine 
of advancing civilization with its human freightage in eager search of the one su- 
preme goal — life and prosperity. But still the best had not been attained. 

H»,w weary the caravan! How tedious the early railway passage over the great 
western world! The culmination, however, was to come — has come. 

And this widely coveted zenith, this supreme desideratum of man and object 
of man's search is here. How so? By a Union Pacific train from Omaha reach- 
ing Salt Lake City in twelve hours, San Francisco sixteen, and Portland sixteen 
hours ahead ot all competition. 



"THE OVEBLAND LIMITED" 



The Great California Train 

ONLY ELECTRIC LIGHTED DAILY TRAIN 
BETWEEN EAST AND PACIFIC COAST 



ir. 



IW1 



OFFICERS 

G. W. WATTLES. President J. W. THOMAS. Cashier 

W. A. SMITH. Vice-President CHAS. MARSH. Ass't Cashier 

H. E. RAINEY. Ass't Cashier 

Union 

National 

Bank 

OMAHA, NEBRASKA 

Capital and Surplus, $300,000.00 

U. S. GOVERNMENT DEPOSITORY 



Good Farms from $15 to 
$30 per Acre 

Whieh will produce as much corn, grain and alfalfa as land valued at 
♦ 50 to $7 5 per acre. We have land in tracts from 160 to 4.000 acres. 

Custer County, Neb. 

is the central county of the State and is unexcelled for beef and dairy, 
contains the largest cream stations in the world, the three largest in 
Nebraska, has the lowest taxes of any county in the State, and holds 
the only gold medal ever won by a county for first prize on three 
consecutive exhibits at the State Fair. Rainfall: April. 1.92; May. 
4.52: June. 4.92; July. 7'A inches: producing 6.485.000 bushels of 
corn in 1 903. and furnishes ,', of the cream of the State. Excursions 
first and third Tuesday of each month. 

A. B. HARTLEY 

Real Estate and Immigration Agent 
SARGENT, NEB. 



«* a 



H. C. ANDREWS, President J. S. ADAIR. Cashier 

W. R. ADAIR. Vice-President JOHN A. MILLER. Ass't Cashier 

ESTABLISHED 1889 

The 

City 

National 

Bank 

KEARNEY, NEBRASKA 

The Oldest and Largest National Bank in Buffalo County 

DR. J. H. FOWLER 




KEARNEY, NEBRASKA 



W. L. HAND. Lawyer. Title Examiner DAVID CLAYPOOL 

HAND & CLAYPOOL 
REAL ESTATE AGENTS 
KEARNEY, NEBRASKA 

We sell FARMS and RANCHES in Central and Western Nebraska. 
Come to this country of WINTER WHEAT, CORN and ALFALFA. 







• V IV ^ - , > v X- 

1 /% 






'**- v* V 
















-V .... ■ '^"* s ~ 









^ V* 




V a K 



.V s ^ 





















"©._■ V 



* «* v 



% »*' 



■«;■ 






I 

■ 
4 



v^' 



,\V ••'V 



.♦*- 










'bo^ 



-.|§t.' /\}W^J />% «Ap. : ,A ; /t lilt 




